> IRENA welcomes establishment of International Solar Alliance as a platform to advance solar energy

IRENA welcomes establishment of International Solar Alliance as a platform to advance solar energy

Monday, Mar 12, 2018

On the occasion of the Founding Conference of the International Solar
Alliance (ISA), the Director General of the International Renewable
Energy Agency (IRENA), Mr. Adnan Z. Amin, and the Interim Director
General of ISA, Mr. Upendra Tripathy signed a Joint Declaration to
deepen the cooperation between the two organisations to accelerate solar
energy deployment.

“Driven by remarkable cost declines,
innovative policies and new business models, solar energy has emerged as
the fastest growing renewable energy worldwide. There is an immense
opportunity at hand to bring its benefits to more and more countries
around the world,” said Mr. Amin.

“IRENA estimates that solar
must account for at least 35 per cent of global power capacity by 2050
to meet the objectives the Paris Agreement on climate,” Mr. Amin added.
“In this context, IRENA stands ready to work with ISA and its members to
scale-up solar energy deployment as a means to expanding affordable,
reliable and sustainable energy access, as well as to addressing climate
and energy security concerns. IRENA looks forward to strengthening
collaboration with ISA, sharing its knowledge and experience, and making
available its project facilitation tools and platforms.”

“The
International Solar Alliance has a well-articulated goal to facilitate
the mobilisation of USD 1 trillion of capital to rapidly accelerate the
adoption of solar energy all over the world,” said Upendra Tripathy,
Interim Director-General of the International Solar Alliance. “While
solar is fast becoming one of the most cost-effective ways to generate
new power and deliver energy access, to deploy fast enough,
complementarity must exist between our work and the broader renewable
energy mandate and development tools established by IRENA. This fusion
of capabilities will help to catalyse solar development in line with the
goals set out under the Paris Agreement.”

Driven by rapid
advances in technology and economies of scale, the cost of electricity
from solar photovoltaics decreased by almost 70 per cent between 2010
and 2016. IRENA estimates that average cost of electricity from solar
photovoltaics can decrease by further 60 per cent in the coming decade.
Solar power is also a significant employer of people worldwide, with
around 3.1 million jobs working in the sector in 2016.

The Joint
Declaration affirms the commitment of the IRENA and ISA to collaborate
on advancing solar deployment and projects through helping countries
develop policies and regulations around solar energy and through the
implementation of IRENA initiatives such as the Clean Energy Corridors
and the SIDS Lighthouses. IRENA’s project facilitation tools and
platforms such as the Global Atlas for Renewable Energy, the Project
Navigator, and the Sustainable Energy Marketplace will be made available
to ISA, in support of its project-focused work in countries.

The
Founding Conference of ISA, co-chaired by PM Modi and President Macron,
is taking place at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Center in New Delhi
and is being attended by heads of state and government, ministers, heads
of international organisations and other high-level officials.